other voices

publisher's note

Sometimes what can't be happening isn't after all, which is often even more surprising.

People loved or hated La La Land for lots of reasons. Is it too bold to say that an over-the-top romanticization of Los Angeles wasn’t one of them? Because it couldn't even do that, really – it's a film about a few neighborhoods masquerading as a love letter to a whole city. It's an extended riff on an experience in one industry in a sprawling place that – you might be lucky enough to know – has a lot more going on.

New York often suffers the same fate in the popular imagination. A few monuments and institutions end up standing in for everything else that happens here. As it happens, expanding our sometimes too-narrow imagination about what living in this city could be like – or is already like – is one of the things we’re most excited to try to do here each month.

So for March, we bring you photos of Staten Island alongside a dispatch from the hell that is other lawyers at a big Midtown firm. You, the discerning reader of Newest York #4, will also be privy to a conversation with the owner of the best new bar in East Harlem and reviews of recent local dance and art offerings. And if you like numbers, we made sure to interview a very busy comedy trio to accompany our profile of the city's trio of toxic Superfund sites.

Last but not least: would you like to be a part of the adventure that is pulling together next month’s issue? Send your pitches on over. We’re totally serious: info@newestyork.co